Jamila Woods Sends a Strong Message in “Giovanni” Video

Two years ago removed from HEAVN, Chicago R&B singer Jamila Woods is back with “Giovanni,” her new single, which is accompanied by a new music video. The single is named after poet, writer, activist and educator Nikki Giovanni and is inspired by the artist’s poem “Ego Tripping (there may be a reason why).”

“‘Giovanni’ is a song about owning and celebrating all the parts of myself,” she says. “It’s about legacy and lineage, and how the love & strength of the people who made me make me feel invincible.”

Jamila Woods also makes her directorial debut, co-directing alongside frequent collaborator Vincent Martell of the Chicago-based production company VAM Studio with a short film accompanying “Giovanni.” The video is longer than the actual song and is a front-and-center glimpse of the prism of Black women that inspire Woods. Monologues from performance artist Po’ Chop, teaching artist and scholar Dominique James, former Chicago Youth Poet Laureate E’mon Lauren, hair artist Mo G, yoga instructor and youth programming director Kesha Daniels-Rush (Woods’ cousin) and author/healer Philippa Norman (Woods’s mother) reinforce that truth.

Woods will also be doing a special show as part of Red Bull Music Festival Chicago on November 30 at the Harold Washington Cultural Center Performing Arts Theatre. For more information, visit Red Bull’s site HERE.

Watch the video and listen to the studio version below.

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